Synopsis

As countries implement energy policies that promote energy efficiency, distributed generation and renewable energy resources, the share of distributed energy increases, particularly the intermittent type such as wind, solar, small hydro and combined heat and power (small and micro-CHP). Due to the fact that intermittent types of electricity generation are difficult to predict, electrical networks— both local and transmission— are turning to integrated distributed energy resource.

By combining distributed generation with energy storage and demand response,countries can decrease problems caused by distributed generation and increase the value of intermittent energy in the market.

The main objective of the Task is to study how to achieve the optimal integration of distributed generation, energy storages and flexible demand, and thus increase the value of distributed generation and demand response and decrease problems caused by intermittent distributed generation (mainly based on RES) in the physical electricity systems and at the electricity market. The Task deals with distributed energy resources both at local (distribution network and customer) level and at transmission system level where large wind farms are connected.

The first Phase of the Task was finished with seven participating countries in 2008 producing the state-of the art of the integration and proposal for the further studies.

On the basis of the Phase one the Task extension was started in 2010 with the main topics to assess the effects of the penetration of emerging DER technologies to different stakeholders and to the whole electricity system. Five countries participated in the Phase two and it finished in November 2012.

Intermittent generation like wind can cause problems in grids, in physical balances and in adequacy of power.

Thus, there are two goals for integrating distributed energy resources locally and globally: network management point of view and energy market objectives.

Solutions to decrease the problems caused by the variable output of intermittent resources are to add energy storages into the system, create more flexibility on the supply side to mitigate supply intermittency and load variation, and to increase flexibility in electricity consumption. Combining the different characteristics of these resources is essential in increasing the value of distributed energy resources in the bulk power system and in the energy market.

Objectives and Approach

The main objective of this Task is to study how to achieve a better integration of flexible demand (Demand Response, Demand Side Management) with Distributed Generation, energy storages and Smart Grids. This would lead to an increase of the value of Demand Response, Demand Side Management and Distributed Generation and a decrease of problems caused by intermittent distributed generation (mainly based on renewable energy sources) in the physical electricity systems and at the electricity market.

Thus the integration means in this connection

-how to optimally integrate and combine Demand Response and Energy Efficiency technologies with Distributed Generation, Storage and Smart Grids technologies, at different network levels (low, medium and high voltage)

-and how to combine the above mentioned technologies to ideally support the electricity networks and electricity market

The Task will provide the integration based solutions and examples on successful best practices to the problems defined above to the different stakeholders.

The first step in the Task was to carry out a scope study collecting information from the existing IEA Agreements, participating countries with the help of country experts and from organized workshops and other sources (research programs, field experience etc), analyzing the information on the basis of the above mentioned objectives and synthesizing the information to define the more detailed needs for the further work. The main output of the first step was this state-of-the art report and the proposal for the future work to be carried out as a second step of the Task.

On the basis of the Phase one the Task extension was started in 2010 with the main topics to assess the effects of the penetration of emerging DER technologies to different stakeholders and to the whole electricity system. The emerging DER technologies to be discussed include

-plug-in electric and hybrid electric vehicles (PEV/PHEV)

-different types of heatpumps for heating and cooling

-photovoltaic at customer premises

-micro-CHP at customer premises

-energy storages (thermal/electricity) in the connection of previous technologies

-smart metering

-emerging ICT

-Other technologies seen feasible in 10 – 20 years period, especially by 2020.

Phase 1

Subtask 1: Information collection on the characteristics of different types of DER in the integrated solutions

Subtask 2: Analysis of the information collected and preliminary conclusions (state of the art)

Subtask 3: Feedback from the stakeholders: Workshop

Subtask 4: Final conclusions and the detailed definition of the further work

Phase 2

Subtask 5: Assessment of technologies and their penetration in participating countries

Subtask 6: Pilots and case studies

Subtask 7: Stakeholders involved in the penetration and effects on the stakeholders

Subtask 8: Assessment of the quantitative effects on the power systems and stakeholders

Copper Alliance and Ecofys have been involved in a joint study on flexibility in power systems. A new overview clarifies the flexibility needs for the transition to power systems with very high penetration levels of variable renewable energy sources (VRES). The talk provides a comprehensive assessment of the complete spectrum of flexibility options and identifies key barriers for their deployment.

The coordination of flexibility (load, production, storage) for markets and networks at the same time is a complex task. Switzerland is looking into solutions, which offer a large playing field for markets and competition. Of interest are topics such as benefits for markets, networks and total social welfare, dynamic innovation, data exchange, processes for markets and non-discriminatory access.

In the project hybrid-VPP4DSO DR-components in Austria and Slovenia are studied regarding their flexibility potential and their willingness to provide their flexibility. Potential business models and business cases are investigated to make use of this flexibility in different markets. Furthermore, the impact on the grids is analyzed and how this flexibility can relieve the grids in critical situations. Hybrid solutions – serving both markets and grids – are challenging regarding unbundling requirements, but have the highest priority of the project.

The VALUEFLEX project aims at developing services able to give to utilities and grid operators a better understanding of the value of electricity flexibility. These services are based on a comprehensive set of simulation tooling (the Toolbox) that allows companies to analyse the economic and technical feasibility of demand response services.

Buildings automation can become a major contributor for providing flexibility services to the electric grid and greater overall energy efficiency, but the vast majority of facilities (at least in the USA) are not prepared to easily coordinate with the grid even if an flexibility signal was available. Efforts are underway to advance interoperability of connected building equipment to bring down integration costs and enable buildings to be more efficient and flexible users of energy.

Flexibility is an upcoming theme for DSOs. Some insights and first results of current test beds, of the Dutch DSOs Stedin and Enexis, which explore demand side management will be shared. Also, questions that still need to be answered in the Netherlands regarding DSM by DSOs, will be addressed.

Based on the results of the Dutch smart grid pilot PowerMatching City phase-II (45 house holds), we try to answer the question: what are the potential benefits of a large-scale implementation of PowerMatching City phase-II in the Netherlands? To do so, the measured data from the pilot was used to quantify the flexibility of the smart appliances (i.e. micro-CHPs, heat pumps and electric vehicles). Consequently, this flexibility is used as input for a model that represents the Dutch power system. To quantify the benefits both the energy market value and the grid value are assessed, using basic energy market simulations and load balance calculations respectively.

This talk presents preliminary results and studies from the Smart Grid Gotland Project. The focus of the talk is on subproject (i) wind power integration and (ii) market test and installation. Results from subproject (i) include simulation results on demand-response potential for congestion management. Results from subproject (ii) include lessons learned from an actual demand-response implementation and survey results on customer satisfaction.

One of the possible approaches to implement demand response is using a real-time market. Within the EcoGrid project, a real-time market place for distributed energy resources was implemented in a demonstration on the island of Bornholm in Denmark with considerable customer involvement. Flexibility and volume of demand response activated by real-time price signals will be discussed.

The report “Regulatory Recommendations for the Deployment of Flexibility“ focuses on flexibility from distributed resources, including demand side participation, and seeks to identify flexibility services, relevant value chains, but also the necessary commercial and market arrangements, while it answers the question on how different actors can be incentivised to provide and use flexibility. Finally, concrete recommendations are provided to the European Commission, to policy makers and stakeholders, for removing regulatory barriers and incentivising the uptake of flexibility from distributed resources.

Demand side flexibility is needed in order to effectively integrate renewables and distributed
generation in the future energy system. The enabling of flexibility involves many different aspects –
from the technical capabilities of equipment (e.g. heat-pumps, storages, photovoltaic systems),
consumer behavior to aggregation for market participation – and will lead to new services for the
energy system. These aspects are targeted by various technology collaboration programs of the
International Energy Agency (IEA).
Experts from these energy technology initiatives will discuss recent research results, technology
options and international activities together with academics, distribution network operators and
representatives from industry.

Heap Pump Program Annex 42 – Smart Heatpumps for enabling demand flexibilityDennis Mosterd (BDH, The Netherlands)The main focus of the Annex will be on arranging the information on heat pumping technologies in such a way that it will lead to better understanding of the opportunities and using these in the right way in order to reduce the use of primary energy consumption and the CO2-emissions as well as energy costs.

Energy Conservation Energy Storage Annex 28 – DESIRE – Distributed Energy Storage for the Integration of Renewable EnergiesAndreas Hauser (ZAE Bayern, Germany)Energy Conservation through Energy Storage” TCP focuses on the overall storage properties/characteristics and their impact for the integration and utilization of renewable energies. In this context the focus shall move from large, central, most cost effective energy storage technologies like pumped hydro, to the potential of small, distributed energy storage technologies. The main question of the Annex is, what can be the contribution of distributed energy storage to the integration of renewable energies in future energy systems?

Hybrid & Electric Vehicle Task 28 – Electric Vehicle as domestic electric storage: vehicle to homeCristina Corchero (IREC, Spain)The first objective of the IA-HEV Task 28 “Home Grids and V2X Technologies” is to analyse the technical and economic viability of V2X technology and, specifically, the potential synergies with self-generated electricity in households. In the talk some international demonstration projects will be presented including identification of technical and economic gaps and regulatory issues addressed within the Task.

Building Flexibility

Energy in Buildings & Communities Annex 58 – Data-driven models for DSM in buildingsPeder Bacher (DTU, Denmark)A key component for enabling control of energy systems for DSM are good models, which are able to automatically adapt to the local conditions for the particular system. Therefore they must be driven from sensor data and hence without the need for humans spend time on tuning and maintaining them. The best models for such applications rely on a combination of physical and statistical knowledge. During the work of IEA Annex 58 a range of such models and selection techniques, covering different needs and time scales, has been developed. This talk will give an introduction to the methodologies together with a presentation of a range of applications.

Energy in Buildings & Communities Annex 58 – Characterization of Building Energy Performance involving Building Automation and Smart Grid TechnologiesSusanne Metzger (TU Wien, Austria)
The objective of IEA Annex 58 is to advance the knowledge on characterization of building energy performance based on reliable measurements in full-scale assemblies. Some information for this purpose could be generated by building automation systems and smart meters installed in homes and buildings. Related field procedures would have to be based on both, information available in systems and components, and quality aspects regarding data access and handling in the field. In this presentation, the current state-of-the-art and general principles of home and building automation systems relevant in this context will be reviewed. In conclusion from this technology review, solutions emphasizing integrated communication systems hold the promise to minimize efforts for data acquisition in the field. Examples from field validations in the areas of building energy performance and smart grid optimization will serve to illustrate current applications of the acquired knowledge.

Energy in Buildings & Communities Annex 67 – Towards zero-energy districtsGlenn Reyners (KU Leuven, Belgium)
With an increasing penetration of distributed and intermittent renewable energy sources in an energy efficient building environment, demand-side flexibility and energy-exchange between different actuators show significant potential to further increase the energy efficiency on a district level while avoiding potential grid stability issues. An important source of demand-side flexibility is identified to be the embedded thermal mass of building. By intelligent, active control of the indoor temperature this thermal mass can be activated to support such demand-response programs.
To exploit this potential, a reliable method to describe the energy state of buildings and their installations is essential. In this lecture, on the one hand a bottom-up, multi-domain simulation framework to assess the impact on a neighbourhood level of energy efficiency measures taken at the individual building level is presented. On the other hand, a generic characterization method is shown to assess the potential for active demand response using the thermal mass for new as well as existing buildings.

System Flexibility & Customer driven New Energy ServicesISGAN Annex 6 Using distribution connected flexibility to improve T&D system operationAnthony Zegers (AIT, Austria)
Distribution connected flexibility is expected to play an important role in future grid operation. This will require an ever closer cooperation between Transmission System Operators and Distribution System Operators. ISGAN Annex 6 investigated the current interaction between TSOs and DSOs and identified possible future ways of cooperation.

Demand Side Management Task 17 Integrating the Customer – Demand Side FlexibilityRené Kamphuis (TNO, The Netherlands) and Matthias Stifter (AIT, Austria)In this presentation the context and motivation of Task 17 is presented. Current developements for integration of renewables with demand side flexibility are explained by means of sucessful demonstration examples. Preliminary results and conclusions are outlined.